The Last Goodbye--A Transformers Prime: Predacons Rising Story
by BBPRIMEFAN101
Summary: He knew it wasn't going to be easy. But he never expected it to be this hard.


"**The Last Goodbye—A TFP: Predacons Rising Story"**

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**Summary: He knew it wasn't going to be easy. But he never expected it to be this hard. **

**Transformers © Hasbro**

**Lily © Me**

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**~The Last Goodbye~**

Lily could not believe it. There was no way it could be true. She and the other Autobots stood there in silence, looks of shock on their face plates. Even her father was at a loss for words. As they listened and watched the revived Megatron and Starscream briefly converse, they were witnessing the most wanted, the longest-awaited moment in all of the history of Cybertron.

The Great War was finally ending.

"No!" Megatron exclaimed after Starscream's plot for Decepticons to regain Cybertron. When the second-in-command asked why, he replied, glancing at Optimus Prime, "Because I now know the true meaning of oppression, and have thus lost my taste for inflicting it." Starscream attempted to persuade Megatron again, but the former tyrant had confirmed once more that the Decepticons were finished, and then transformed, soaring into the air.

Starscream stood awkwardly amongst the Autobots, all of them staring. He nervously chuckled as he faced them. "Yes, well, we all have plenty to think about, don't we?" Some of the bots glared at him now, Lily included, and he retreated a little. Then he turned away, transformed into his jet mode and took off in a hurry, heading for Darkmount Tower.

Then, Team Prime faced one another, still absorbing all that has happened in only mere moments. "I cannot believe it," gasped Arcee.

"It's over..." added Bulkhead.

"After eons of fighting, it's finally over!" Bumblebee cheered. "The War is over!" The Autobots celebrated, embracing one another, letting their emotions flow freely for the first time in a very long time.

Smokescreen waltzed over to the container Unicron's spirit now resided and picked it up. "Hey, Unicron," he teased and shook the container, laughing as he watched Unicron's essence spin and swirl around before setting it back down.

Optimus smiled as he lowered his head a little; at last, the day he had longed for finally came. He somehow knew it would one way or another. He knew Megatronus, his old mentor, was still in that bulky, beaten-up, war-tattered metal chassis somewhere. He had to congratulate Megatron on his decision, for it had now changed the fate of Cybertron and its inhabitants. Peace can now prosper on their home planet. As his eyes fixed upon his chest and he heard his comrades cheer, his smile slowly faded and his gaze fell. Then he felt someone grasp his hand and shake it. He looked down to see the brightened face of his daughter, Lily.

"Oh, I can't believe it, Papa! It's finally over!" she cried. "Aren't you happy?!"

Optimus smiled a little. "Yes, Lily, I am happy," he told her.

She giggled and hugged him. "Now we can have more father-daughter moments together, without having to worry about the Decepticons! We can be a real family. Doesn't that sound great, Papa?"

It did sound great, but it only made Optimus's spark ache. He sighed softly, resting a hand on Lily's back and letting it drop slowly. However, she caught a sullen tone in that sigh and looked up at him, concerned. "What's wrong, Papa?" she asked, worry in her bright optics.

The Prime lowered his gaze once more with another faint sigh. "I will tell you after a while. For now, join the others in celebration," he told her, slightly smiling. Lily grinned with a nod, then skipped off to join the others. As he watched his family commend, he slightly turned away, trying to think of a good explanation for what he had to inform his Autobots. But he knew that there was one he had to break the news to first, and feared how she would react.

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Later that night, when the rest of Team Prime headed off to recharge in peace for the first time, Optimus led Lily away to somewhere they could talk in private, somewhere the other Autobots would not be able to hear them. He watched Lily skip ahead of him, listening to her hum. She was so happy. And it only made his spark ache even more. "Lily," he said. "This looks like a good spot."

Lily spun on her heels and paced over to him, smiling her loving smile. "So, what do we need to talk about, Papa?" She noticed a look of forlorn in his eyes, and she felt a slight ache in her chest through their bond. Her jet wings twitched a little with worry. "What's the matter?" she asked, a little afraid.

Optimus didn't want to tell her. It was the last thing he wanted, but he knew she had to know the truth. While his spark told him no, his mind told him to go forth with it. He knelt down to Lily's height, drew a deep breath, and looked at her straight in the eye. "Lily...there is something you must know," he began. When she nodded, he took it as an acceptance to continue. "I am sure you are wondering what happened to the All-Spark."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well, in order to put Unicron's soul into the chamber, I had to remove the All-Spark."

"Oh...I never really thought about what happened. Where did it go?"

Optimus slowly looked down at his chest and rested a hand over it. "I have placed it...with the Matrix of Leadership," he said as bluntly as he possibly could.

Lily blinked. "But...But isn't that where...?"

"And thus, my own spark has merged with the millions upon millions of souls contained within the All-Spark. And there is no way of removing it."

"W-What are you saying?"

Optimus held his breath and looked firmly at her, as well as lamentably. "Lily...I have no choice but to disperse all of the souls, including my own, back into the Well of All Sparks, so that our planet can thrive once more."

Lily shook her head. "No..."

"I speak of the truth, Lily."

"No...!"

"I do."

"You can't...! No! It isn't true, you're lying!" Lily exclaimed, balling her fists.

"Lily, even if I was telling you a lie, you would be able to know through our bond," Optimus told her, "and I do not lie to you now. I am sorry, but this is the absolute truth." He forced himself not to look away from Lily's horrific expression; when she hung her head a moment later, he did so and sighed, closing his eyes. "I am sorry, Lily. I know it is hard to accept...but I had to save the All-Spark, and this was the only possible way that I could." He flinched when he felt a sharp kick to his leg and looked to see Lily's foot pressing against his armor.

Lily slowly retracted her foot, slightly starting to tremble. "You idiot...You stupid idiot...There had to have been another way...There had to be...!" she exclaimed softly, refusing to believe a single word Optimus said—even though she knew he wasn't lying.

"I am sorry, Lily, but there was no other option." Optimus hung his head, looking at the ground. "I know it may not appear so, but this hurts me as much as it does you right now. But, I just want you to know that everything will be alright. I wanted to tell you first before I told the others. I plan to give them the same message tomorrow morning. And until then...I would like to spend this last night with you. If you will let me." He sadly smiled and raised his head up to her. He could see fresh streaks of tears on her cheeks.

Lily was beyond dumbfounded. She still couldn't wrap her mind around this. First, she was overjoyed that the War was over, and was ecstatic about spending real quality time with her papa—only to discover that he has only this night and the following morning left to live. Her throat ached as she held back whimpers. It wasn't fair to her. She had finally had a papa, and now she was losing one again. In a few quick strides, she hugged Optimus tightly around his neck, her face plate slowly cringing.

With her head directly by his audio receptor, he could hear her faint hiccups and whimpers becoming louder and much harder to contain. He held her close to his chest, trying to hold his smile, which had now begun to quiver. But it became more difficult as Lily started to actually cry long, shaky whimpers and whines, like a sparkling who had just lost its carriers. Her cries were filled with anguish and sorrow, and he could feel her hot tears drip and run down his armor. He imagined that she thought saving her those years ago, when she became an Autobot, was all for nothing, since she was losing a second parent. By now, her cries had become more woeful as they rattled in Optimus's audio receptor. He felt her spark racing—and imagined it cracking to bits out of despair. As he thought about it, he realized that this was the last time he would hear her cry. The last time he would hear her voice. The last time he would hold his daughter in his arms. The last time he would get to love on her. His smile had now completely fallen, overwhelmed with trembles as he fought to no avail to hold back swelling up tears.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to her, the first tear falling down his cheek plate. But as he predicted, his words had no affect on Lily as she continued to sob. He cringed and pressed her tighter against his body as he began to tremble himself. "I'm sorry," he repeated, his voice quivering and cracking. He felt Lily go limp in his arms as she began to wail. He could no longer contain it, and tears started streaming down his face. He held his breath to hold back a sob; he never imagined this to hurt so much. "I'm so sorry...!" he wept softly, nuzzling Lily and keeping her close to his spark. As much as it pained him, he tried to remember the sound of her crying, so that he would remember it always. He started rocking side to side, running his hand up and down her back, as he sat down on the ground, placing her in his lap. He felt her body rack with shudders each time she sobbed, and his own body shook with grief. He tried to quiet his sobs by taking in deep, rattling breaths, but wasn't fully successful. "I'm sorry...!" he croaked one final time before falling into a fit of quiet sobs, while his adopted daughter vocally wept. He now dreaded the following morning where he had to depart from her. Both overwhelmed, neither of them could believe that this was their last night together as father and daughter. Their last goodbye. And weeping was the only way they could say it.

Until the following morning, none of the Autobots were aware of what took place that night on Cybertron, nor heard any of the agonizing cries of a spark-broken child and a torn father.

**the end. **


End file.
